LAS 1.0/1.1 LiDAR data format translation
Project description
libLAS is a C/C++ library for reading and writing ASPRS LAS version 1.0 and 1.1 data. LAS-formatted data is heavily used in LiDAR processing operations, and the LAS format is a sequential binary format used to store data from sensors and as intermediate processing storage by some applications.
libLAS is available under the terms of the BSD License. It builds on work by Martin Isenburg and Jonathan Shewchuk of the University of North Carolina in their LAStools project. libLAS’ base C++ library that reads and writes LAS 1.0/1.1 data was replaced with new development, and Martin’s tools were ported to use this new code.
libLAS’ initial development was supported by the IGSB of the Iowa DNR for use in its state-wide LIDAR project.
Download
The 1.0.0 version of libLAS can be downloaded from http://liblas.org/wiki/1.0.0
Older releases may be obtained from http://liblas.org/wiki/Releases
Binaries
Windows binaries of libLAS are provided in two forms. The easiest form is to obtain OSGeo4W and select the libLAS package to install. Alternatively, you can download a Windows package with full spatial reference support from the release page. GDAL support is only provided with the OSGeo4W package, however.
Linux, Mac OS X, and Solaris binaries are not provided. The source code uses the standard GNU autotools/automake stack for compilation and installation.
Documentation
LAStools / libLAS Command-line Utilities
Software Development with libLAS
FOSS4G 2008 presentation that provides a basic overview of the design and philosophy of libLAS
Tutorials - tutorials on using libLAS from C++, Python and .NET/Mono languages
LAS C API- doxygen docs that describe the libLAS C API
dotnetLibLAS API - docs for the .NET API
LAS Doxygen Docs - doxygen docs of the entire C/C++ API
LAS Format Elements - comparison of elements of LAS Format 1.0 and 1.1
Software - a list of geospatial software with reading and writing capabilities of LAS Format
Resources - a list of general LiDAR/LAS resources
LAS Format Specifications
The LAS Format Standard is maintained by ASPRS Standards Committee. LAS format standard documents are available in PDF format:
LAS 2.0 Format Standard (2007-08-17) - Proposed
LAS 1.2 Format Standard (2008-05-02) - Proposed
LAS 1.1 Format Standard (2005-05-07)
LAS 1.0 Format Standard (2003-05-09)
License
libLAS is available under the terms of the BSD License. See License for a copy.
FAQ
The FAQ is available from http://liblas.org/wiki/FAQ
Features of libLAS
Open Source
libLAS is open source software. You can embed it in your own applications (and even resell it) as long as you follow the crediting restriction of the BSD license.
Multiple APIs
libLAS has C, C++, .NET, and Python APIs.
Spatial Reference System Support
Linked against the latest version of libgeotiff, you can set and get the spatial reference systems of LAS files using simple proj.4 coordinate system definitions.
Simple Variable Length Record Abstraction
libLAS provides a sensible abstraction for working with variable length records (VLR) in LAS files, and it transparently manages the VLRs related to spatial referencing systems for you.
Command-line Utilities
libLAS provides ports of the LAStools utilities by Martin Isenburg for doing things like translating from one version of the LAS format to another, inspecting header information, and translating LAS data to and from text.
Cross-platform operation
libLAS is known to work on MSVC 7.1+ (Windows) and GCC4.1+ (OS X and Linux) platforms on both big- and little-endian architectures.
Development
Subversion Tree
The SVN repository URL is available at http://liblas.org/svn
svn checkout http://liblas.org/svn/trunk/
Information about Trac
Trac Open Source Project
TracGuide - Built-in Documentation
TracFaq - Frequently Asked Questions
TracSupport - Trac Support
Community
IRC
Find the libLAS developers on IRC on #liblas at Freenode.
Mailing Lists
liblas-devel - http://mail.hobu.net/mailman/listinfo/liblas-devel
liblas-commits - http://mail.hobu.net/mailman/listinfo/liblas-commits
Release history Release notifications | RSS feed
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